Samuda is up to the task – Wint

Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) General Secretary Dalton Wint says that the federation is confident that Jamaica Olympic Association President Christopher Samuda will make an impactful contribution in the formation of a professional league in the Caribbean.

Samuda was named on April 29 to the eight-member Caribbean Professional League Working Group tasked with making another attempt at forming a regional league. The initiative has been given approval by world governing body FIFA, with work to begin when the coronavirus pandemic is no longer a danger to the world.

Wint says that Samuda's straightforward approach made him the ideal candidate.

"Mr Samuda is a no-nonsense person. He is a go-getter. Whatever he decides that he wants to achieve is something he generally does," Wint told STAR Sport s. "I think that he is focused, he is ready, he is up to the task. That is why we put him forward, and I know that he will do a good job."

Attempts have been made in the past to achieve a similar goal with a group formed in 2014 under then Concacaf president, Jeffery Webb, but those discussions ultimately did not lead to anything viable. Wint believes that this group will be given the time necessary in order to produce more favourable results.

"They need at least a year to get themselves together to create that sort of framework. Yes, we want an aggressive timeline for things to be done, but right now we are at ground zero. They will be able to have time to concentrate on what they are doing with limited distractions," he said. "What is happening is that this group will be able to concentrate solely on the football."

Wint says that the federation is committed to seeing this venture go forward. "The truth is we want to see the sport up and running. That is what we want because football is our business, so we would love to see it happen in short order," he said.